hwork as could be thrown up with difficulty in
the dense undergrowth.

It would be the business of the allies to try and force this line, either
by carrying the central entrenchments across the gap or by turning the
French left flank in the forest of Sars or the French right flank in the
wood of Laniere, or by both of these attempts combined; for it must be
remembered that the numerical superiority of the allies gave them a choice
of action. Should either the stand on the left or that on the right be
forced, the French line would be turned and the destruction of the army
completed. Should the centre be pierced effectively and in time, the
Northern half of the army so severed would certainly be destroyed, for
there was no effective line of retreat; the Southern half might or might
not escape towards the valley of the Sambre. In either case a decisive
victory would destroy the last of the French bodies of defence and would
open the way for an almost uninterrupted march upon Paris.

It will be self-evident to the reader that what with Villars' known
methods, his dependence upon his engineers, the tradition of the French
service in this respect, the inferior numbers of the French forces, and
the glaring necessities of the position, earthworks would be a deciding
factor in the result.

Now the value of entrenchment is a matter of time, and before proceeding
to a description of the action we must, if we are to understand its
result, appreciate how great an advantage was conferred upon the French by
the delay in the attack of the allies.

As I have said, it was upon the morning of Monday, September 9th, that the
two armies were drawn up facing each other, and there is no apparent
reason why the assault should not have been delivered upon that day. Had
it been delivered we can hardly doubt that a decisive defeat of the French
would have resulted, that the way to Paris would have been thrown open,
and that the ruin of the French monarchy would have immediately followed.
As it was, no attack was delivered upon that Monday. The whole of Tuesday
was allowed to pass without a movement. It was not until the Wednesday
morning that the allies moved.

The problem of this delay is one which the historian must anxiously
consider, for the answer to it explains the barrenness and political
failure associated with the name of Malplaquet. But it is one which the
historian will not succeed in answering unless indeed further documents
shou